SPC urges to safeguard national defense interests

The Supreme People's Court (SPC) of the People's Republic of China issued Opinions on Further Exerting the Functional Role to Safeguard National Defense Interests and the Legitimate Rights and Interests of Servicemen and Their Families (hereinafter referred to as the Opinions) on October 31, 2014.

The Opinions proposes to strengthen efforts of military-related rights' safeguarding work, to safeguard national defense interests and the legitimate rights and interests of servicemen and their families, and to comprehensively promote military-related rights' safeguarding work of the people's court.

The Opinions requires that people's courts at all levels shall fully exert the judicial functions and hear military-related cases justly and timely according to the law.

The people's courts at all levels shall punish criminal activities that infringe national defense interests, endanger national security, harm military struggle preparation and combat effectiveness according to the law.

The people's courts shall earnestly safeguard the interests of national defense and the legitimate interests of servicemen and their families according to the law in order to provide effective judicial guarantee for the long-term stability of the country and for the promotion of economic and social development.

The Opinions gives specific requirements on entire proceedings and related litigation work of military-related cases in aspects including the hearing of the case, judicial relief, case trial, litigation guarantee, dispute mediation, execution and judicial services.

The Opinions also requires that crimes against national defense interests including the crime of assembling a crowd to storm prohibited military zones and the crime of assembling a crowd to disturb military administrative zones will be cracked down with stern punishment according to the law in order to safeguard military security.

Military-related fraud crimes including fraudsters posing as servicemen; forge, alter, sale or steal, snatch the documents, certificates and seals from the troops; illegal production, sale or purchase of military uniforms; forge, steal, sale, purchase, or use of symbols and signs of the armed forces will be cracked down with stern punishment in order to protect the reputation and image of the military.